BBC rakes in adverts cash as heads roll in cost cuts

The corporation’s rivals and detractors are up in arms over claims of commercialisation

THE PARADOX will not have been lost on rebellious news heavyweights such as Jeremy Paxman and John Humphrys, who fear that the BBC is losing its soul.

Just as the corporation’s director-general Mark Thompson was revealing details of 2,500 job cuts that will hit hardest in news and factual programming, the BBC’s money-making arm was celebrating a windfall.

After being granted approval from its governing body, the BBC Trust, the BBC announced that its news content, due to be generated by some 370 fewer staff, will later this year be beamed online around the world  adorned for the first time with advertising.

The new commercialisation of BBC.com is very much in keeping with thrifty Thompson’s mantra of making less go further  forced on him by a shortfall of £2 billion on the licence fee. Users of BBC.co.uk will not notice any difference as banner ads will be seen only by